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The Doomsday Machine (episode)
The Enterprise discovers a superweapon capable of destroying entire planets. Summary The USS Enterprise receives a faint and garbled distress signal. It is apparently a starship's disaster beacon, but they are unable to make out any words aside from 'Constellation'. Enterprise enters system L-374 and finds her sister ship, the USS Constellation, a powerless wreck, drifting and abandoned. Captain James T. Kirk transports aboard Constellation, and finds Commodore Matthew Decker the sole survivor aboard. Decker, barely lucid, informs Kirk that something "straight out of hell" has destroyed his ship, which had been investigating the breakup of the fourth planet in system L-374. His ship damaged beyond repair, Decker beamed his crew down to the third planet, only to have the planet killer consume that planet too, killing the entire crew while Decker remained helpless aboard the Constellation. Decker explains that the planet killer uses a pure anti-proton beam as its primary weapon, and creates an interference that prevents subspace communication. Kirk postulates that the planet killer is a machine, a "doomsday weapon", a bluff, and never meant to be used. This one is roaming the galaxies, consuming for fuel everything in its path, including whole planets. Its alien makers are long since dead. Kirk and Scotty remain on board the Constellation to rig her for towing, while McCoy returns to the Enterprise with Decker. When the planet killer returns, it attacks the Enterprise, but then veers off and heads for the densely inhabited Rigel system. Commodore Decker pulls rank and assumes command of Enterprise (using General Order 104, Section B, Paragraph 1a) over the objections of Spock. Decker orders an attack on the planet killer despite Spock's protest that its hull is made of neutronium and is therefore impermeable to attack from a single ship. Spock recommends escaping the subspace interference in order to warn Starfleet Command, but a mentally unstable Decker will not hear of it. He orders Enterprise to move in closer, and the planet killer destroys the Enterprise's deflector shields and transporter. Kirk contacts the Enterprise, and upon hearing that Decker has assumed command, expressly orders Spock to relieve the Commodore "on my personal authority as Captain of the Enterprise." But the planet killer locks the Enterprise in a tractor beam, and begins pulling her inside. Kirk and Scotty, still on board the Constellation, manage to repair the impulse engines and recharge one of the phaser banks. Constellation distracts the planet killer, and both ships escape. Kirk makes contact with the Enterprise and upon learning of the command situation, he personally orders Spock to relieve Decker of command. Decker resists this insubordination in his eye, but Spock is firm enough in his actions to make the Commodore step down. Spock orders Decker to be taken to sickbay under armed escort. Suffering from a mental breakdown brought on by the extreme guilt over the loss of his crew, Commodore Decker escapes custody and steals a shuttlecraft from the Enterprise, piloting it on a suicide course directly into the weapon's orifice, where he is quickly destroyed. However, the Enterprise sensors detect a small drop in the power output of the planet killer. The shuttlecraft's explosion, however small, had in fact caused some minor damage to the weapon's interior. Realizing that Decker's idea, on a larger scale, might work, Kirk orders Scotty to set the Constellation to self-destruct and then return to Enterprise. Kirk pilots the Constellation on a direct course toward the weapon. He beams out at the last second, and the Constellation's engines detonate directly inside the planet killer's orifice, bypassing the neutronium hull and destroying it from within. Following the battle, Captain Kirk noted in his log that Commodore Decker gave his life in the line of duty. Background Information * This episode marks the debut of the very complex and re-designed engineering set. The dilithium crystal storage units now occupy the center of the floor (complete with recycled Horta eggs!), a ladder and upper level have been added into what was just a high bank of lighted panels in the first season. The set also is entered through a short spur hallway now, rather than as a side door off a main corridor. The console across from the forced-perspective impulse engines end of the set has been replaced by a doorway and moved to the main wall to the left of the red grid. The huge structures among which Kirk's evil self and Ben Finney once hid are not seen in detail again, but the Emergency Manual Monitor set was built on stilts on that spot, making its debut in "Mirror, Mirror". Those engine components would appear and disappear as scenes dictated-- they show up in "Day of the Dove" and "The Paradise Syndrome" but are absent completely in "Elaan of Troyius." * The equipment Scott pulls out of the new storage area near the doorway to Engineering is the same prop Spock uses in Metamorphosis as he works on the shuttlecraft. * James Doohan cited this episode for years as his favorite. * Auxilary Control, first seen in this episode aboard the Constellation, was not a new set. It was merely a redress of the engineering room set with a few additional walls from the briefing room added in, including the large viewing screen from the briefing room in The Menagerie and Space Seed, which in turn was lifted from the bridge set used in Where No Man Has Gone Before. * The year this episode was filmed, AMT produced the first Enterprise model kits. One such kit was used to make the model used for the destroyed Constellation. The decals for the ship's registration numbers are just a scrambled version of "1701." The model does not have the details of the regular Enterprise miniatures, but still looks very convincing.....except at the end when it's flying into the doomsday weapon. * When Jimmy Doohan says, "Thirty seconds later...poof!", it doesn't sound like he is using his Scottish accent. * Footage of Scotty being tossed around Engineering is stock footage from Tomorrow is Yesterday. A console that appears only in that episode can be seen, and you can glimpse a crewman in red coveralls, too! * Norman Spinrad was displeased with the model used for the berserker-- he envisioned a doomsday machine bristling with all sorts of evil-looking weapons. Considering the challenging effects and set budget for this episode, the weapon turned out pretty well. * Additionally, Spinrad has expressed disappointment that the actor whom he envisioned playing Decker, Robert Ryan, was not cast. * William Windom's powerful acting in this segment makes it doubly regretful that his character would not return to the show. Like Captain Queeg and his worry balls in "The Caine Mutiny," Matt Decker possessively clutches the record tapes from his ship throughout his time on the Enterprise. * William Windom most notably played the prosecutor opposite Gregory Peck's Atticus Finch in the 1962 film To Kill a Mockingbird. Windom's prop in that film was a pencil, which he toyed with while cross-examining witnesses. * According to Mr. Windom, the director didn't know what to do with the scene of Decker describing what had happened to the Constellation, so he told Mr. Windom just to "improvise", during which time the director simply left the camera running and walked out to work on something else. William actually made a totally-improvised ten minute speech, and, in the end, they only used about a minute and a half of it. * CORRECTION ON PREVIOUS: In the interview of Mr. Windom where the aforementioned comment was made, the actor was only kidding when he talked about the director 'leaving the room' during the scene where the shuttle was flying into the maw. He was merely reflecting on the director's laid-back style - he was not stating a fact. * Footage of the asteroids is reused from The Cage. * Will Decker, from "Star Trek: The Motion Picture", was Matt Decker's son. * Vulcans never bluff. *Nichelle Nichols (Uhura) does not appear in this episode. * This episode was nominated for a Hugo Award in 1968 as "Best Dramatic Presentation". * Sol Kaplan's suspenseful "countdown" music, written for this episode, was re-used (some would say overused) in many second season episodes. Was this music the inspiration for John Williams' award winning two-note-based music in "Jaws"? * There is a curious event in this episode that may have resulted from an unscripted ad lib by James Doohan. Just after Kirk dispatches Scott to the engine room of the Constellation, Scotty tells Washburn, "Come along, lad!" Immediately, Kirk says, "Washburn, you get in there." referring to a section of the auxilary control room. Richard Compton (Washburn) looks genuinely surprised at the contradictory orders. Memorable Quotes "All power plants dead. Reserve energy banks operative at a very low power level." "Life-support systems?" "Also operative at a very low power level. The entire bridge is damaged, and uninhabitable; the rest of the ship appears able to sustain life." -- Analysis by Spock to Kirk of the damage to the Constellation "Captain's Log, Stardate 1313.1: Exceptionally heavy subspace interference prohibits us from contacting Starfleet to inform them of the destroyed solar systems we have encountered. We are now entering limits of system L-374. Science Officer Masada reports the fourth planet appears to be breaking up; we are going to investigate." -- Decker's last log entry "We tried to contact Starfleet; no one heard -- ''no one! We-we couldn't run!" "What happened to your crew?" "Oh, well, I had to beam them down! I mean, we were dead -- no power, our phasers useless. I stayed behind -- captain, last man aboard ship; that's what you're supposed to do, isn't it? And then it hit again and the... transporter went out; they were... down there, I'm... up here." "What hit? What attacked you? (fighting for control) "They say there's no devil, Jim... but there is -- r-right out of hell, I saw it! "Matt, where's your crew?" "On the third planet." "There is no third planet." "Don't you think I know that? There was, but not anymore! They called me -- they begged me for help! Four hundred of them! I couldn't! I - I couldn't..." -- '''Kirk and Matt Decker on the fate of the crew of the Constellation "She was attacked by what appears to be, essentially, a robot; an automated weapon of immense size and power. Its apparent function is to smash planets to rubble, then digest the debris for fuel. It is, therefore, self-sustaining so long as there are planetary bodies for it to feed on." --'Spock', describing what attacked the Constellation This whole thing is incredible -- a machine, a device like that, who would build it?" "We don't know. An alien race, possibly from another galaxy." "But why?" "Bones... did you ever hear of the doomsday machine?" "No; I'm a doctor, not a mechanic." "It's a weapon... built primarily as a bluff -- it was never meant to be used. So strong it could destroy both sides in a war; something like the old H-bombs were supposed to be. That's what I think this is; a Doomsday Machine that someone used in a war uncounted centuries ago. They don't exist anymore, but the machine is still destroying." : - Dr. McCoy and Kirk "Oh, forget about your theories! That thing is headed for the heart of our galaxy! What are you going to do about it?" "Commodore, first thing is to get you back to the Enterprise." "Oh, no -- I stay here! I'm not leaving my ship! "Matt, there's no ship to leave -- it's a dead hulk! Look, we'll take her in tow; I'll stay on board and get her ready. Now, you go back to the Enterprise with the doctor and let him help you." "It's just that I.. I never lost a command before." -- Decker, McCoy and Kirk "It came upon us fast, captain, but we seem able to maintain our distance." "We're blind, here; what does it look like?" "It looks very much like Commodore Decker's planet-killer... and it is pursuing us." -- Spock and Kirk "Damage to communications, captain; interference will mean..." (static) "Spock? Come in Spock... Spock... We're stuck -- blind and deaf!" "And paralyzed; no power." "Well, we just can't sit here while our ship is being attacked... Scotty, you've got to get me some maneuvering power." "I can't repair warp drive without a space dock--" "Then get me impulse power -- half-speed, quarter-speed, anything! If we can get this hulk moving, we might be able to do something!" "Aye, the impulse engines aren't too badly off; I might coax 'em a bit." -- Spock, Kirk and Scott "Random chance seems to have operated in our favor." "In plain, non-Vulcan english, we've been lucky." "I believe I said that, doctor." -- Spock and McCoy "You can't let that thing reach Rigel! Why, millions of innocent people would die! "I am aware of the Rigel colony's population, sir, but we are only one ship; our deflector generators are strained, our subspace transmitter is useless. Logically, our primary duty is to pick up the captain and escape this thing's subspace interference in order to warn Starfleet Command." "Our primary duty is to protect life and the safety of Federation planets! Do you deny that?" "Mr. Sulu, lay in a course for the Constellation." "Belay that last order, helmsman. One hundred eighty drgrees, hard about; we are going to turn and attack." "You will carry out my last order, Mr. Sulu." "Mr. Spock; I am officially notifying you that I am exercising my perogative under regulations as a Starfleet commodore and that I am assuming command of the Enterprise." "You have the right to do so, sir -- but I would advise against it." "That thing must be destroyed." "You tried to destroy it once before, commodore; the result was a wrecked ship and a dead crew." "I made a mistake then, we were too far away. This time, I'm going to hit it with full phasers at point-blank range." "Sensors show the object's hull is solid neutronium; a single ship cannot combat it." (slams hand on conn)"Mr. Spock, that will be all! You have been relieved of command; don't force me to relieve you of duty, as well." -- Decker and Spock "You can't let him do this!" "Doctor, you are out of line." "So are you -- sir! Well, Spock?" "Unfortunately, General Order 104, Section B leaves me no choice. Paragraph 1a clearly states--" (rolling his eyes) "To blazes with regulations! You can't let him take command when you know he's wrong!" "If you can certify Commodore Decker as unfit for command, I can relieve him under Section C." (slaps the conn) "I'll certify that right now!" "You will also be asked to pull your medical records to prove it." (pause) "Now, you know I haven't had time to conduct an examination on him." "Then your statement would not be considered valid." "You may leave the bridge, doctor." "What about the captain? We can't just--" "Doctor... you may leave the bridge." "Spock? Do something!" "Mr. Spock knows his duty under regulations, doctor... do you?" --'McCoy', Decker and Spock "Scotty -- where's that power?" "Coming, sir! If I push these impulse engines too hard in the shape they're in, they'll blow apart!" "Washburn, get down to engineering and assist Mr. Scott." "Aye, sir." "Scotty, push it right to the edge; this ship has got to maneuver." --'Kirk', Scott and Washburn, trying to revive the Constitution's impulse engines "We're moving, and the Enterprise isn't. Maybe that thing will see us, and let the Enterprise go. If I just had some phasers..." "Phasers? You got 'em -- I have one bank recharged." "Scotty! You just earned your pay for the week -- stand by." -- Kirk and Scott, piloting the damaged Constitution "Upon finding your first officer unwilling to take aggressive action against that thing--" "You mean you're the lunatic who's responsible for almost destroying my ship?" --'Decker' and Kirk "I told you, I am in command here and I will give the orders, captain! We are going to turn and attack!" "Not with my ship, you don't! Mr. Spock, you are to relieve Commodore Decker -- that's a direct order!" "You can't relieve me, and you know it! Regulations--" "Blast regulations! Mr. Spock, I order you to take command on my personal authority as captain of the Enterprise!" -- Kirk and Decker "Commodore Decker; you are releived of command." "I don't recognize your authority to relieve me." "You may file a formal protest with Starfleet, assuming we survive long enough to reach a Starbase -- but you are relieved... Commodore, I do not wish to place you under arrest." "You wouldn't dare!... You're bluffing." "Vulcans never bluff." "No... no, I don't suppose that they do... very well, Mr. Spock -- the bridge is yours." -- Spock and Decker's last confrontation "You said it yourself, Spock... there is no way to blast through the hull of that machine, so... I'm going to take this thing right down it's throat." "This is Kirk -- Matt, you'll be killed!" I've been prepared for death ever since I... ever since I killed my crew." "No one expects you to die for a mistake in judgement." "A commander is responsible for the lives of his crew... and for their deaths. Well, I should have died with mine." "You cannot succeed, Commodore; your only logical course of action is to return to the ship." -- Decker, Kirk and Spock "Matt, listen to me; you can't throw your life away like this... Matt, you're a Starfleet officer; that makes you a valuable commodity. We need you - your experience, your judgement. Matt! We're stonger with you than without you." : - Captain James T. Kirk "Spock, listen -- maybe Matt Decker didn't die for nothing; he had the right idea, but not enough power to do it. Am I correct in assuming that a fusion explosion of 97 megatons will result if a starship's impulse engine is overloaded?" "No, sir, 97.835 megatons." "97.835 megatons... Will it be powerful enough to destroy that thing?" "The machine's outer hull is solid neutronium. There is no known way to blast through it--" "Not through it, Spock -- from inside it!" -- Kirk and Spock "Captain, the machine's neutronium hull makes sensor readings of the inner mechanism impossible." "Spock; you don't know?" "Captain... you're getting dangerously close to the planet killer." "I intend to get a lot closer -- I'm going to ram her right down that thing's throat!" -- Spock and Kirk "A cranky transporter is a mighty finicky piece of machinery to be gambling your life on." : - Commander Scott "Borgus frat" (or some similar expletive) : - Montgomery Scott "Gentlemen, I suggest you beam me aboard." -- Kirk, awaiting transport Links and References Regular cast * William Shatner as Kirk * Leonard Nimoy as Spock * DeForest Kelley as McCoy * James Doohan as Scott * George Takei as Sulu Guest Stars * John Winston as Lieutenant Kyle * Eddie Paskey as Lieutenant Leslie * William Blackburn as Lieutenant Hadley * William Windom as Commodore Matt Decker * Elizabeth Rogers as Lieutenant Palmer * John Copage as Elliot * Richard Compton as Washburn * Tim Burns as Russ * Jerry Catron as Montgomery * Vince Deadrick as Decker (Stunt Double) References antiproton; antiproton beam; ''Constellation'', USS; Doomsday machine; L-370 system; L-374 III; L-374 system; L-374 IV; Masada; neutronium; Rigel. Doomsday Machine, The de:Planeten-Killer (Episode) fr:The Doomsday Machine nl:The Doomsday Machine